Colorado: Democratic Party

Nine Democrats are vying to be appointed to the state Senate seat vacated by Denver attorney Jennifer Veiga, who resigned to move to Australia.

Her successor will be chosen tonight by the Senate District 31 vacancy committee. The district includes central Denver and portions of Adams County.

The candidates are:

Patrick Byrne

Age: 28

Occupation: Fiscal policy analyst at the Colorado Department of Transportation

Time in district: Two years

Why you? I am ideally suited to do this because of my budget experience in municipal, county and state government in Colorado.

Jill Conrad

Age: 40

Occupation: Ph.D. student in educational policy, education consultant, at-large member of the Denver Public Schools Board of Education

Time in district: Six years

Why you? I want to create new opportunities for everyone in the community to become engaged and empowered in our government, our schools, our communities and our state.

In a word: no real surprises here.
On March 8, the State Party Re-Organization meeting of the Democratic Party took place at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver.

There were no real surprises:
All five of the State party ofifcers were re-elected, without being challenged:
Chair: Par Waak
1st Vice Chair: Dan Slater
2nd Vice Chair: Margaret Atencio
Secretary: Carolyn Boller
Treasurer: Butch Hicks

We created a new party initiative: The Labor Initiative. They join the following existing initiatives: African-American, Latino, Disabled, Education, Women, Stonewall (LGBT), Progressive, and the Young Dems.

There was an attempt to introduce some rule changes and that created the only controversy of the day.

On Saturday, Democratic activists from around the state got together for the Colorado stop on the Netroots Nation Salon Series: Netroots Nation in Your Neighborhood. Among the panelists at the gathering (which was sponsored by local progressive organizations like AM 760, Progress Now, and Square State) was Colorado AFL-CIO director Mike Cerbo, who let everyone present know how one of the newest members of the Colorado Democratic Congressional delegation feels about the contentious Employee Free Choice Act.

Square State:

During our last panel, Governing as Progressives and Taking Over the Democratic Party, the discussion went to The Employee Free Choice Act ... CO AFL-CIO director Mike Cerbo said:
Betsy Markey, one of the people that has probably more incentive than any of the others to sit there and hand wring and hide in the weeds about this stood up front and said 'I'm going to cosponsor.

A lot has changed in Colorado since Barack Obama accepted the Democratic Party's nomination for president here in August. Thousands more Coloradans are unemployed or on public-assistance rolls — or both.

Governments are struggling to close multimillion-dollar budget gaps. A local school district is even considering a four-day week just to cut costs.

With all that in mind, reporters set out Monday to ask Coloradans what they would like President Obama to hear during his visit to Denver today. Reporters looked for workers and business owners who are weathering the recession without complaint, and those who are hurting.

GARY HALL, 55, DENVER

Two college degrees. Unemployed.